NWMR: Passports

jasminelorraine20

BF, DS and I are going to the Bahamas next Spring and none of us have our passports. I know Walgreens does them, but I'm not sure I trust them with our original birth certificates. Where are some other places that do them, that are trustworthy and reasonably priced? Also curious for how far in advance we should get them done, I know they take awhile to come in. Thanks!

ebp913

Are you near a University?  The public University does them in our area as does the Post Office. 

jasminelorraine20

ebp913 said:

Are you near a University?  The public University does them in our area as does the Post Office. 

@ebp913 I didn't think of the Post Office! Thank you! And yes I am near Hampton U, but I think I will go the PO route. I thought they did them here on base, but it's only for government related reasons that they issue them.

ccam

We did them through the post office and had them to us in a few weeks.  I would do them as soon as possible though, because you never know.  Oh, and call to see if you need an appointment.  Our post office only does them during certain hours by appointment only. 

jasminelorraine20

ccam said:

We did them through the post office and had them to us in a few weeks.  I would do them as soon as possible though, because you never know.  Oh, and call to see if you need an appointment.  Our post office only does them during certain hours by appointment only. 

Ok, great I will do that! The trip is in May so I'm thinking we'll go take them no later than February.

jf198400

We took a trip last May and I applied for my passport in Feb. I didn't want to worry about it so I paid extra for it to be expedited. Go sooner if you can, it will be less stressful.

VitaLuna

Post office. I think the only other place that does them are passport agencies. I'd probably get the pics done at walgreens or something, though. At least at my PO, it's kind of a PITA to have your pic done there, and it's right in the main lobby next to the line.

ss+el

Walgreens only takes the photos, they do not handle the documents.
They are typically cheaper than the post office for the pics.

jasminelorraine20

ss+el said:

Walgreens only takes the photos, they do not handle the documents.
They are typically cheaper than the post office for the pics.

I didn't know this. Thank you

rubber_chicken

regarding passport agencies, you can only do it in person if you are traveling within the next 24 hours, and can provide proof (a plane ticket etc.)  i had to do this earlier this year - went to the agency in person with all my documentation, dropped it off, and picked up my passport four hours later.  they were so nice and it only cost $170 - if you're within driving distance of a passport agency and need a passport ASAP, go in person instead of using one of those companies that advertise online.

Carnation77

Ditto the Post Office.

ss265

I would go on the travel state website and look up places near you that do them. The post office is what most people commonly think of but we got DS's passport at our local county courthouse because we thought the line would be shorter. (It was and they took the photo on site). The website will also tell you which places require appointments.

The website also has all the documentation requirements - applying for an infant's passport is more of a hassle because both parents need to be there etc.

Finally I would apply ASAP just to be on the safe side. We applied for DS's passport in May for a trip we took in October. Good thing we did too because passports were delayed with the government shutdown.

https://travel.state.gov/passport/

jasminelorraine20

ss265 said:

I would go on the travel state website and look up places near you that do them. The post office is what most people commonly think of but we got DS's passport at our local county courthouse because we thought the line would be shorter. (It was and they took the photo on site). The website will also tell you which places require appointments.

The website also has all the documentation requirements - applying for an infant's passport is more of a hassle because both parents need to be there etc.

Finally I would apply ASAP just to be on the safe side. We applied for DS's passport in May for a trip we took in October. Good thing we did too because passports were delayed with the government shutdown.

https://travel.state.gov/passport/

Thank you!! This was a huge help.

mb314

Yes, do it early and triple check everything.  Both you and the baby's father have to be present with the child, or you have to have a notarized letter from the parent not present.  It is a pain.  We also had the short form of DS' birth certificate and needed the long form, so that delayed us several weeks since we had to order the long form birth certificate. 

daisy662

Go online to print out all the paperwork (can't remember the website, just google it and it will be a .gov website). Then Go to walgreens and get your pics. Take your paperwork and pics to the post office and they will process it and send it out. Do not wait. Go in the next week or two at the latest. Sometimes they take a week to get and sometimes much longer. Have fun! I hope you are going to Atlantis - it's awesome!!

newenglander71

We were able to get our passport photos at AAA for free with our membership.  If you need 3 - which it sounds like you do - it could save a little money.

jasminelorraine20

PaulaCT said:

We were able to get our passport photos at AAA for free with our membership.  If you need 3 - which it sounds like you do - it could save a little money.

jasminelorraine20

jasminelorraine20 said:

PaulaCT said:

We were able to get our passport photos at AAA for free with our membership.  If you need 3 - which it sounds like you do - it could save a little money.

tbmadeamistake

Make sure you check with your post office first.  Ours used to do them and now we have to go the town hall in order to get them done.  Walgreens does the photos, make sure your LO is in a decent mood, they have to be a certain background, eyes open, no smile, etc.  We got C's at two months old and she did awesome.